JPMorgan Chase to Cut Up to 4,000 Jobs in 2013

JPMorgan Chase & Co
plans to cut 3,000 to 4,000 jobs in its consumer bank in 2013,
representing about 1.5 percent of the company's overall
workforce, as the bank tries to improve the profitability of its
branches.

NEW YORK, Feb 26 JPMorgan Chase & Co
plans to cut 3,000 to 4,000 jobs in its consumer bank in 2013,
representing about 1.5 percent of the company's overall
workforce, as the bank tries to improve the profitability of its
branches.

The cuts will come mainly through attrition, spokeswoman
Kristin Lemkau said. The bank's branches have 63,500 employees,
representing about a quarter of JPMorgan Chase's total
employees.

JPMorgan is one of the few big U.S. banks that is still
adding branches to its network, but to boost profit it plans to
scale back the tellers it has on hand for routine transactions
and to add some salespeople for products and services like
wealth management that can boost revenue.

The net effect will be to reduce staff per branch by 20
percent through 2015, the company's head of consumer banking,
Ryan McInerney, said in a presentation to investors.

In JPMorgan Chase's mortgage business, the company
reiterated its previously announced plans to shed 13,000 to
15,000 jobs by 2014.

JPMorgan Chase had 5,614 branches at the end of 2012, and
plans to increase its network by about 100 branches a year, it
said. Chase's U.S. branch network is second to Wells Fargo &
Co's in size.

The bank is hoping to focus on selling more to wealthy
depositors. Its average consumer checking account has a balance
of $4,276, and about half of all affluent U.S. households are
within two miles a Chase branch or automated teller machine, the
bank said.

JPMorgan Chase overall earned $21.9 billion last year,
excluding accounting charges linked to changes in the value of
its debt. The bank said it has the potential to earn about $27.5
billion, thanks in part to efficiency gains. It aims to cut
overall expenses by $1 billion in 2013.

For overall staffing levels, JPMorgan Chase had 258,965
employees globally at the end of 2012. Its headcount rose
following the financial crisis, to 262,882 in the second quarter
of 2012 from 219,569 in the first quarter of 2009. Since last
year's second quarter, staffing levels have drifted lower.

JPMorgan Chase shares were down 1.3 percent at $47.08 on
Tuesday morning on the New York Stock Exchange.